CLEVELAND, Ohio – Northern Kentucky volleyball secured a road victory in the penultimate match of the regular season, defeating Cleveland State, 25-22, 25-18, 21-25, 25-20. The Norse move to 15-12 overall and 8-7 in Horizon League play while the Vikings drop to 7-19 (3-12 Horizon).
First Set Summary
- The two teams went back-and-forth to start the set, with Cleveland State leading by a 13-10 count until the Norse took their first lead at 14-13. NKU used a few CSU errors to take a 20-17 lead, but the Vikings were able to close within a point of the Norse at 22-21, prompting an NKU timeout.
- Following the pause, NKU sided out and ended the frame with back-to-back kills from Anna Brinkmann.
- Brinkmann and Reilly Briggs both had four kills to lead the Norse, with Brinkmann also adding five digs. Ashton Terrill chipped in five digs as well, while Laura Crawford led the Norse with six.
Second Set Summary
- NKU took the lead early in the second set and built upon that, moving out to an 18-11 advantage before Cleveland State called the second of its timeouts.
- The Vikings gained some momentum but were unable to catch up before a CSU error and a kill from Peytton Bagwell ended the set and put the Norse one set away from victory.
- Brinkmann added four more kills and Cleveland State was held to a .073 hitting percentage in the set.
Third Set Summary
- Cleveland State had a hot start, beginning the set on a 6-1 run before the Norse called for a timeout. The Vikings converted their first six attack attempts into kills before Crawford blocked CSU's setter and brought NKU within a point, 8-7.
- However, the Vikings pulled ahead thanks to an efficient offense and strong defense at the net, leading by as many as eight points before claiming the set.
- Once again, Brinkmann paced the offense, putting away five kills, while Crawford added four.
Fourth Set Summary
- NKU used a 5-1 run to start the fourth set, but the Vikings caught up at the 14-14 mark. The Norse stabilized and pulled back ahead, 22-18, prompting a Cleveland State timeout.
- Terrill served up a point to give the Norse match point before the match ended on a CSU service error.
- The Norse hit .333 with 16 kills in the set, four of which came from Brinkmann and three from Briggs.
Norse Notes
- Brinkmann, Crawford and Olsen all registered double-doubles in the victory. Brinkmann had 17 kills and 13 digs, Crawford added 10 kills and 15 digs, and Olsen chipped in 30 assists and 10 digs.
- Briggs also reached double-digit kills, with 11. She also added four blocks, while Peytton Bagwell led the Norse at the net with five blocks.
- Terrill had a match-high 22 digs and added two aces. She now has 1,527 career digs and surpassed Colleen Kaufman (1992-95) for fourth on NKU's all-time career digs list.
- NKU hit .217 for the match and held Cleveland State to a .194 hitting percentage. The Vikings had the edge in blocks, 11.0-8.0, but the Norse had 79 digs to CSU's 72 and served up six aces while surrendering just two.
Up Next
- NKU concludes the regular season tomorrow at Youngstown State. First serve against the Penguins is set for 4 p.m. ET and the match will be broadcast on ESPN3.
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